News

The Latest

Tuesday, May 03, 2011

Ave Maria Press Author Lawrence Cunningham to Receive University of Portland’s Highest Honor

Lawrence S. Cunningham, Ave Maria Press author and John A. O’Brien Professor of Theology at the University of Notre Dame, will receive the University of Portland’s highest honor, the Christus Magister Medal, at the university’s 2011 commencement exercises on May 8. The University of Notre Dame made the following announcement earlier today: "Cunningham, a scholar of systematic theology and culture, Christian spirituality, and the history of Christian spirituality, joined the Notre Dame faculty in 1987, having taught at Florida State University for the previous 21 years. An award-winning teacher who chaired Notre Dame’s Department of Theology from 1992 to 1997, he also has written for a wide variety of scholarly and popular journals, contributed numerous articles to encyclopedias and dictionaries of religion and is the author or editor of some 25 books, including, most recently, Things Seen and Unseen: A Catholic Theologian’s Notebook. Adept at explaining complex and sometimes arcane details of Church history, liturgy, teaching, governance and spiritual life, Cunningham is frequently consulted by journalists covering religious topics. The recipient of numerous honors for his writing from the Catholic Press Association, Cunningham also has received honorary degrees from Bellarmine University, Neumann College and Saint Anselm’s College."

Friday, April 29, 2011

Lisa Hendey Contributes to "Prayers to St. Gianna" App

Notre Dame, IN—Ave Maria Press author Lisa Hendey is among the contributors to eVotions, a brand new series of devotion apps for Catholics, available for iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad. Little i Apps, the now-famous developer of Confession: A Roman Catholic App, announced today that "Prayers to St. Gianna Molla" is approved and available from the iTunes store. Lisa Hendey, whose website ministered to a community of over 500,000 Catholic moms in 2010, wrote the introduction to this new app. St. Gianna was an Italian pediatrician, wife, and mother, and is best known for risking her own life by refusing an abortion when she was pregnant with her fourth child. The eVotions series makes its debut on the iTunes App Store and Android Marketplace with the release of three new apps, including St. Joseph, St. Gianna, and Blessed John Paul II.

Wednesday, April 27, 2011

Congregation of Holy Cross to Ordain Two Priests Saturday, April 30, 2011

We at Ave Maria Press rejoice with the Congregation of Holy Cross for John Britto, C.S.C., and Paul Ybarra, C.S.C., who will be ordained Holy Cross priests on Saturday, April 30, 2011 at Notre Dame's Basilica of the Sacred Heart. Spes Unica, a vocations and discernment blog covering the lives, ministries, and apostolates of the priests and brothers of the Congregation of Holy Cross, has some coverage that you won't want to miss in the week leading up to the ordination ceremony and to the Royal Wedding of Kate Middleton to Prince William. Here's a sample of what you can expect to see on Spes Unica: "Feeling a little inundated by all the Royal Wedding coverage of Friday’s nuptials between Prince William and Kate Middleton? Looking to hear about other important news and events beyond the marriage of Prince William and Kate? Well, we here on the Spes Unica blog have just what the Good Shepherd prescribed for you. On Saturday, April 30, two of our men in Holy Cross, Deacons John Britto, C.S.C., and Paul Ybarra, C.S.C., will be ordained priests by Bishop Daniel Jenky in the Basilica of the Sacred Heart at Notre Dame. Starting tomorrow, our blog will have exclusive and behind-the-scenes coverage of this amazing, news worthy event that is a great sign of hope for our Church and for our world. Tired of hearing about Kate Middleton’s wedding dress and who designed it? We will talk priestly vestments with Patty Schlarb, the Liturgical Seamstress at the Basilica, who makes the chasubles given to the ordinandi. We will also get the inside scoop on this year’s vestments."

Sunday, April 24, 2011

Holy Cross Father Neil Wack, C.S.C., Receives Distinguished Pastor Award at NCEA

The priests, brothers, sisters, and ministries of the Congregation of Holy Cross celebrate this week as one of our own is honored at the 2011 NCEA Convention and Expo in New Orleans. Fr. Neil Wack, C.S.C., was named a Distinguished Pastor by the National Catholic Education Association (NCEA) for his "outstanding support of Catholic Education.” Fr. Neil is pastor of Christ the King Parish in South Bend, IN, which is the parish in which he was raised. Under Wack's leadership, Christ the King School has maintained its status as one of the flagship schools in the Diocese of Fort Wayne/South Bend. A 1984 graduate of the school and now a local celebrity, Fr. Neil said of the Holy Cross education the parish and school provide: “Our mission and the mission of all Catholic schools is that very basic mission of what Father Basil Moreau said, ‘Educate the mind and the heart, but never educate the mind at the expense of the heart.’ Everything we do is geared towards that, and every decision I make should be looking to that.”

Sunday, April 17, 2011

Author and New Media Entrepreneur Selected to Attend Vatican Blog Meeting

Notre Dame, IN—Lisa M. Hendey, webmaster of CatholicMom.com, self-taught new media entrepreneur, and author of The Handbook for Catholic Moms and the forthcoming A Book of Saints for Catholic Moms, was selected from over 750 entries and invited to the Vatican for an international gathering of 150 Catholic bloggers to be held on May 2, 2011—the day after Pope John Paul II will be beatified in St. Peter’s Square. According to website of the Vatican’s Pontifical Councils for Culture and Social Communication, the purpose of this meeting is to “allow for a dialogue between bloggers and Church representatives, to listen to the experiences of those who are actively involved in this arena, and to achieve a greater understanding of the needs of that community.” This meeting reinforces the directives of Pope Benedict XVI on World Communications Day 2010, in which the Roman Pontiff challenged priests to “proclaim the Gospel by employing the latest generation of audiovisual resources (images, videos, animated features, blogs, websites) which, alongside traditional means, can open up broad new vistas for dialogue, evangelization and catechesis.” Upon hearing that she was selected to attend the Vatican blogger meeting, Hendey said, “I am so humbled and honored to be among the 150 bloggers selected. It was an absolute surprise. . . . I'm thrilled to have this tremendous opportunity.” Hendey intends to provide regular updates via her Twitter and Facebook profiles during the Vatican meeting and invites anyone interested to follow her on these platforms. Hendey, who founded CatholicMom.com in 2000, began as a stay-at-home mom teaching herself web design and blogging platforms, and eventually started the renowned Catholic Moments podcast. Her site welcomed over 500,000 unique visitors to its thriving online community in 2010; these numbers represent visits from people in nearly 200 countries. Hendey is committed to serving Catholic moms through new media technologies and stated, “Moms who work full time, who parent on their own, who home school children, or who spend time volunteering can connect and learn from each other, pray for each other, and celebrate the beauty of our faith with each other. As the technology continues to grow and evolve, so does our commitment to using it as a Church to care for the faithful.” Based in Fresno, California, Hendey routinely leads workshops and lectures around the country, encouraging Catholic moms in their vocations and teaching priests, diocesan and parish staff, and lay ministers how to integrate new media technologies into their ministries.

Friday, April 15, 2011

Pray the Stations: En Español

Notre Dame, IN—Just in time for Holy Week 2011, Ave Maria Press has released two new ways to pray the Stations of the Cross in Spanish. Stations of the Cross, an app for iPhone and iPod Touch, was initially released in 2010, but has now been updated with a Spanish-language option, enabling Spanish-speaking users to prayerfully walk in solidarity with Jesus on his agonizing Way of the Cross—from his last tortured moments in the Garden of Gethsemane to his death and burial. The Stations of the Cross iPhone app is the perfect pocket devotional, particularly during this Lenten season. Blessed Basil Moreau, founder of the Congregation of Holy Cross, wrote that “human life is like a great way of the cross. This way of the cross is everywhere and we travel it every day, even in spite of ourselves and without being aware of it.” Has Redimido al Mundo, the Spanish edition of You Have Redeemed the World, is written from the depths of that understanding. Steeped in the spirituality and mission of the religious communities of the Congregation of Holy Cross, this booklet invites readers to contemplate the saving power of Christ’s death and resurrection through the ancient practice of praying the Stations of the Cross.

Tuesday, April 05, 2011

Justin Fatica to Appear on EWTN Bookmark

Tune in to EWTN starting Sunday, April 17th to see Catholic Evangelist Justin Fatica discuss his most recent book, Win it All with EWTN Bookmark host Doug Keck. The program will air several times during the week of April 17th and will be viewable online after the first show has aired. PROGRAM SCHEDULE: April 17th Sunday 9:30am and 11:30pm April 18th Monday 5:00am April 20th Wednesday 5:30pm Join Doug Keck as he interviews Fatica, a renowned Catholic evangelist, founder of Hard as Nails Ministry, and focus of the HBO documentary Hard as Nails. In Fatica's newest book, Win It All, Fatica draws on his own faith journey, as well as experiences from the lives of his friends, to illustrate the steps toward living a God-centered life. Each of Fatica’s steps to winning it all is explained through a clear lesson based on scripture, Church teachings, and the lives of inspiring Christians. The steps : • Recognize Your Importance • Discover Your Mission in Life • Make Your Mess Your Message • Keep Your Passion • Remain Fearless • Commit to Loving • Never Give Up • Live Every Day as If It Were Your Last

Monday, March 21, 2011

Rilke Poem Inspires Title of New Joyce Rupp Book

Notre Dame, IN—Titled after a poem by German mystic Rainer Maria Rilke, the newest book by Joyce Rupp draws on a rich variety of faith traditions to provide meditations on God’s names for every day of the year. Fragments of Your Ancient Name brings together reflections on God from Christian, Jewish, Muslim, Hindu and other sources as a guide for readers to explore multicultural and historical conceptions of God. Whether drawing from the Psalms, Sufi saints, Hindu poets, Native American rituals, contemporary writers, or the Christian gospels, each page of Rupp’s beautiful collection includes a ten-line poetic meditation, followed by a mantra for prayerful embodiment of each day’s name for God. A beloved spiritual writer with over one million books sold to date, Rupp explains how exploring names for God in different religions enriched her own understanding of God. Rupp writes in the introduction to Fragments, “I hope these reflections strengthen your faith by contributing to a vibrant relationship with the Divine and that they increase your respect for those who see ‘God’ differently than you do.” Rabbi Rami Shapiro, author of Recovery—The Sacred Art, writes in praise of Fragments, “This is a collection for people open enough to the Divine to no longer pretend that God speaks from only one text or tradition.” In this remarkable treasury overflowing with awe in the face of God’s greatness and mystery, Rupp stirs both the imagination and the heart and challenges readers to discover new dimensions of the God who is beyond all names. Fragments will nourish and inspire the hearts of the faithful of any religious tradition.